Marked for Abdramane Oumar
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market14 Aug 2028
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Renaissance they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad14 Aug 2028
Zakaria Ajoughlal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad14 Aug 2028
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Bernard Baba was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout14 Aug 2028
Mathieu Adoassou has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Renaissance will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
The dugout14 Aug 2028
Youssef Dalouzi asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
The dugout14 Aug 2028
Abdramane Oumar is still being punished for one mistake
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market17 Jul 2028
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Mahamat Ali Hassan will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Renaissance the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad17 Jul 2028
Ricky Ngatchou and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Transfer targets17 Jul 2028
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. AS Etat Major have kept their man, and Renaissance go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Squad17 Jul 2028
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Bernard Baba was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout17 Jul 2028
Mathieu Adoassou has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Renaissance will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Market17 Jul 2028
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
Squad17 Jul 2028
The system has changed and his position has not. A footballer can improve his form; he cannot improve the manager’s formation, and that is the whole of the problem.
The dugout17 Jul 2028
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
Market17 Jul 2028
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Renaissance know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market12 Jun 2028
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Renaissance they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad12 Jun 2028
Ricky Ngatchou was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad12 Jun 2028
Words at Renaissance training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mahamat Ali Hassan is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout12 Jun 2028
Zakaria Ajoughlal has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Renaissance will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Market12 Jun 2028
“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.
The dugout12 Jun 2028
Yacine Wakili knocks on the manager’s door
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Yacine Wakili trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The dugout12 Jun 2028
Abdramane Oumar is still being punished for one mistake
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
Market12 Jun 2028
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Amine El Maswab’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
Squad12 Jun 2028
A call-up flatters the player and the club that produced him in the same breath. Renaissance would like him back in one piece and know they will not be consulted.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market15 May 2028
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Mahamat Ali Hassan will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Renaissance the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad15 May 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Renaissance this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad15 May 2028
Franck Talla falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout15 May 2028
Zakaria Ajoughlal has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Renaissance will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
The dugout15 May 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Appolinaire Djingabeye, and the manager let it.
The dugout15 May 2028
Youssef Dalouzi asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
From our football correspondent
Steady
The dugout17 Apr 2028
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Renaissance may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Market17 Apr 2028
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Renaissance they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad17 Apr 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Renaissance this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad17 Apr 2028
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Franck Talla was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout17 Apr 2028
Zakaria Ajoughlal has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Renaissance will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Market17 Apr 2028
No place for Robert Mboya in the plan
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Robert Mboya has his answer from Renaissance; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
The dugout17 Apr 2028
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
Market17 Apr 2028
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Amine El Maswab’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
Squad17 Apr 2028
The shrug has gone, the language is coming, and he now argues in training like somebody who expects to be here next year. Half a signing's value is this and none of it appears on a fee.
From our football correspondent
Steady
The dugout27 Mar 2028
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Renaissance may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad27 Mar 2028
Zakaria Ajoughlal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad27 Mar 2028
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Franck Talla was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout27 Mar 2028
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
The dugout27 Mar 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Mahamat Ali Hassan, and the manager let it.
Market27 Mar 2028
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Youssef Dalouzi signs something — a contract at Renaissance or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Market27 Mar 2028
3 months left and the two sides are nowhere near each other. Every week this drags on takes money off what Renaissance could get for him.
The dugout27 Mar 2028
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Abdramane Oumar trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Squad27 Mar 2028
The language has come, the shrug has gone, and he argues in training like a man who expects to be here next year. None of it shows up on a fee and all of it shows up on the pitch.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match18 Mar 2028
Every run ends on an afternoon somebody had marked down as routine. This one went 23 matches, which is long enough that a town had stopped counting, and short enough that it will remember exactly who stopped it.
Market20 Mar 2028
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Mahamat Ali Hassan will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Renaissance the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Player ratings20 Mar 2028
Successful dribbles: 25. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Squad20 Mar 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Renaissance this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match18 Mar 2028
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout20 Mar 2028
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Market20 Mar 2028
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
The dugout20 Mar 2028
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑1, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Squad20 Mar 2028
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Mahamat Ali Hassan was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Player ratings25 Oct 2027
Successful dribbles: 27. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad25 Oct 2027
Yacine Wakili and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Player ratings25 Oct 2027
Marked 7.34 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, Renaissance had the best player on the pitch.
The dugout25 Oct 2027
Zakaria Ajoughlal has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Renaissance will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
The dugout25 Oct 2027
“A point is a point and I will take it, but we should have had all three.” Ahmat Allamine after the 0‑0 draw, and the sentence every manager in the country said at some stage this weekend.
Match23 Oct 2027
Ninety minutes, two goalkeepers with clean gloves, and not one finish worth keeping. Aiglons will be the happier side with the point.
Market25 Oct 2027
The name of Youssef Dalouzi keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Renaissance say nothing, which says plenty.
Market25 Oct 2027
5 months left and the two sides are nowhere near each other. Every week this drags on takes money off what Renaissance could get for him.
The dugout25 Oct 2027
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad13 Sep 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Renaissance this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad13 Sep 2027
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Félix Djoubairou was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout13 Sep 2027
Amine El Maswab has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Renaissance will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Market13 Sep 2027
“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.
The dugout13 Sep 2027
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Market13 Sep 2027
The name of Félix Djoubairou keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Renaissance say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad26 Jul 2027
Yacine Wakili damages knee ligaments — 20 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 20 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Squad26 Jul 2027
Yacine Wakili was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad26 Jul 2027
Words at Renaissance training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Félix Djoubairou is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout26 Jul 2027
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
The dugout26 Jul 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Market26 Jul 2027
The name of Oumar Youssouf keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Renaissance say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad12 Jul 2027
Yacine Wakili damages knee ligaments — 34 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 34 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Squad12 Jul 2027
Yacine Wakili and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Market12 Jul 2027
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Djibrine Allamine has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Market12 Jul 2027
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Abdramane Oumar is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
Market12 Jul 2027
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Ezechiel Mbaiguedem is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
Squad12 Jul 2027
14 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Squad12 Jul 2027
Renaissance are still strangers to each other
5 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.
The dugout12 Jul 2027
Youssef Dalouzi has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Renaissance will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Market12 Jul 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Amine El Maswab signs something — a contract at Renaissance or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.